Another Conservative Enters Senate Race

There are now three candidates running for the GOP nomination to replace retiring Sen. John W. Warner (R-Va).

Robert D. "Bob" Berry, a longtime conservative activist from Springfield, says he filed paperwork with the state party last month and has begun making the rounds to local GOP committees.

"The Republican Party is losing its way on a number of very important issues and it needs some serious guidance in terms of resting on its foundational principles," said Berry, who will face former governor James S. Gilmore III and Del. Robert G. Marshall (R-Prince William) at the GOP state convention in May. "I decided to run because the party needs a lot of help in returning to its roots."

After a 25-year career in the Navy, Berry said he served as an appointee in former President Bush's administration during the 1980s. Berry later worked on Capitol Hill for U.S. Rep. Walter B. Jones (R-NC). In 2001, Berry challenged former Del. J.A. "Jack" Rollison III of Prince William in the GOP primary. Rollison won that race, but lost two years later to Del. Jeffrey M. Frederick (R-Prince William).

Berry, 51, says "he's very much the underdog" against either Gilmore or Marshall, but he plans to campaign hard around a "no compromise" theme.

"On 78 percent of things, you can work with the other side for the good of the country," Berry said. "But there are a substantial number of things that really go to our core belief and my point of view is the Republicans have compromised too much with the liberals in Congress."

Berry said he fears Gilmore is "too capable of compromising the way John Warner did." He says Marshall is a "pretty solid conservative" but adds they "have different backgrounds and experiences."